Chapter 49

Isabella had a drink and knocked out as soon as she got in the car.

Michael saw his chance and called up Jeremy to talk about getting those business expenses reimbursed. He made a point to mention that the branch office often got the short end of the stick, so they needed to make sure employees got their work expenses covered.

Jeremy got the hint right away; the branch office was code for where Eric worked.

First thing the next morning, Jeremy called Vaughn at the branch to pass on the message.

Vaughn was surprisingly touched. "I knew Michael always has my back,making sure I could do my job smoothly."

Jeremy was like, "Dude, don't overthink it. You really think he's got nothing better to do than worry about you?"

Vaughn shot back, "You better believe it. I've seen Michael's car outside the branch a bunch of times. He's worried I'll get mistreated and shows up to support me!"

Jeremy rolled his eyes. He figured Michael was thereto see Eric. But he played along, "Yeah, Michael's got your back. Just do your best and get some good results so you can come back to headquarters soon."

Vaughn was so moved. "Tell him not to worry. I won't let him down.I'll prove myself and show the board I'm not useless."

Vaughn got all fired up, hung up, and called a meeting right away.

At the meeting, he shared the latest orders from HQ. To pump everyone up,he even found a video online and led a dance from the stage in the big

conference room.

For a while, the branch was buzzing with activity.

Vaughn told everyone to make daily, weekly, and monthly plans, with specific actions for each day. Department heads had to enforce this strictly.

Watching Vaughn go wild on stage, Eric had a faint, unreadable smile.

After explaining everything, Vaughn copied the video and led everyone in chanting a slogan three times before ending the meeting.

After the meeting, he kept Isabella and Olivia behind since they were his main performers.

"Mr. Johnson, any instructions?" Isabella asked.

Vaughn said, "I heard you signed a contract with Global Innovators Inc.You didn't let me down. Now, follow up on this project and aim to add a big achievement to the branch by the end of the year. I'll give you a bonus then."

"Mr. Johnson, isn't that a bit rushed?" Isabella thought the timeline was tight, with only three months left until the end of the year.

"That's why you need to hurry. Don't worry. If you do well, I won't shortchange you. Promotions, raises, bonuses, you'll get them all, and I'll take you to the headquarters's annual meeting."

"Okay, Mr. Johnson, we'll get it done," Olivia's eyes litup,and she agreed right away.

After leaving the office, Isabella pulled Olivia aside and asked, "Olivia, are you nuts? With holidays, there's no way we can do it in such a short time."

Olivia said, "Isabella, you don't know how awesome the headquarters's annual meeting is. It's like a feast. There's a bonus just for showing up.

Everyone gets to draw a prize, and the winning rate is 100%,with multiple draws. Lots of people want to go. Now that it's in front of us, we can't miss it."

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's get to work." At this moment,Isabella felt herself like a relentless work machine.

At the end of the day, Michael, as usual, came to pick up Isabella on time,but the office was empty, and she hadn't come out. He had to call her.

"Michael, I'm sorry, I can't leave yet. Mr. Johnson wants the project to move fast. We've only signed the contract, and there are tons of details to finalize. I have to work late tonight to get it done," Isabella explained patiently.

"Your boss is nuts! If he's sick, he should get treated instead of making others suffer," Michael snapped.

"Michael, he's doing it for the company's performance, and Olivia and I want to prove our worth," Isabella said softly.

"But you can't ignore your health and work overtime like crazy every day!"Michael hung up the phone in frustration.

Isabella sighed, put her phone back in her pocket, and got ready to keep working.

Vaughn came over, looking concerned. "Did you have a fight with your husband? It's really frustrating; he doesn't let you advance your career,and you can't even work overtime. I heard your husband is unemployed.If it doesn't work out, you should get a divorce. You're so beautiful; you can find any husband you want!"

Isabella gave Vaughn a strange look and walked away without saying a word.

Vaughn watched her leave, shaking his head and sighing. Isabella was exactly his type, but unfortunately, she was married. If she got divorced,he wouldn't mind her.

As Vaughn was lost in thought, his phone rang. It was MichaeI calling.

"Let's go practice some combat! I'm waiting for you downstairs," Michael said curtly.

Vaughn was flattered. He knew Michael cared about him the most.

He wanted to post on Facebook to tell everyone he hadn't been abandoned by the Johnson Group.

Before leaving, he glanced at Isabella working overtime at her desk and couldn't help but take a picture.

In Michael's car, he took out his phone to look at Isabella's photo,feeling more and more regretful, and sighed.

Michael asked, "What's with that expression?"

Vaughn, eager to share, said to Michael, "There's a female employee at the branch office who's very capable. The key is, she looks exactly like my type.

But she's married, and her husband often fights with her because she works overtime. Michael, do you think if she gets divorced, Grandpa would let me marry her?"

As he spoke, Vaughn showed Michael the photo on his phone.

Michael didn't react at first, but when he saw the photo, it was Isabella. If he weren't so composed, he would have thrown Vaughn out of the car.

He took Vaughn's phone and deleted the photo.

"Hey, Michael, what are you doing? Why did you delete it?" Vaughn said anxiously,reaching out to grab his phone back.

Michael, holding back his anger, said heavily, "As a leader, secretly taking photos of female subordinates and creating unnecessary rumors is troublesome to deal with."

Soon they arrived at the venue. Jeremy hád arrived early,changed into his gear,and was waiting for them.

The two of them changed into their gear and got on the mat.

The three of them had grown up together and were taught by the same teacher, so their skills were evenly matched. But this time, for some reason,Michael was clearly dominating.

Jeremy,watching from the sidelines, noticed that Michael was fighting recklessly, as if he had a lot of pent-up anger.

Seeing Vaughn lying on the ground, unable to get up, Michael gave him a fierce glare and left without a word.

Vaughn struggled to get up, pointing at Michael's retreating figure,and shouted,"Is he crazy? Did he bring me here just to beat me up?"

Jeremy quickly calmed him down, saying, "Calm down. You know he's always been a bit off. Besides, you should be grateful he still has some conscience and called me. Otherwise, if he left you in the middle of nowhere, you wouldn't even know how you died."

Terrified, Vaughn made a mental note of never getting in Michael's car again.